


Splinter

by Waldo



Category: NCIS
Genre: First Time, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-06-24
Updated: 2009-06-24
Packaged: 2017-10-03 12:33:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Waldo/pseuds/Waldo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had been a weird week.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Splinter

It had been a weird week.  There had been a number of out-in-the-sticks trips that had somehow ended up being just him and Gibbs, and they'd talked most of the time.  And not always about the case.  There had even been a night in a Norfolk hotel when it was snowing too hard, they'd been gone too late and they'd gotten just slightly less than nowhere on the case that day. 

And then just after they did wrap up the case the next day, Tony had slipped on a patch of ice and cracked a rib on the curb.  It wasn't the worst injury he'd ever suffered and the Bethesda doc Gibbs had made him see had given him some really decent pain-killers.  But Gibbs had insisted that Tony stay with him for the rest of the weekend anyway.

The meds made him a little drowsy, but he certainly wasn't sick enough to stay in bed all day, so after breakfast he followed Gibbs into the basement to help with the boat. 

It had taken a few years, but he'd been in Gibbs' basement enough now to understand the meditative allure of the woodwork.  Gibbs was doing something with a hand drill that Tony wanted no part of (he could only imagine how dead he'd be if he drilled in the wrong place) so he did the one thing he knew he could do even doped up on meds.  He sanded.  There were some new supports attached that hadn't been smoothed at all.  Tony shifted so that he leaned on his good ribs and began the rhythmic stroking of the wood.

Something weird had been happening between him and Gibbs all week.  It wasn't something he wanted to avoid, but he also wasn't sure that it was… what he thought it was.  Every time they'd stopped for gas in their tour of the Eastern Seaboard, Gibbs had gotten them both coffee.  And he'd remembered to put in a half-cup of sugar and pint of cream, just the way Tony liked.  Neither of them had thought twice about sharing a hotel room (though Gibbs had the presence of mind to get two double beds).  They'd found a basketball game on the t.v. that night and had a good time watching it together.  Gibbs knew more about NBA rules than Tony would have expected.

And now there was this…this… being with Gibbs when there was no way to pretend the job required it. 

The previous night, Tony had fallen asleep on the sofa after taking his meds and Gibbs had woken him up and dragged him upstairs.  Tony remembered some vague mumbling about there being some kind of project all over the guest bedroom, so Gibbs had given Tony a pair of sweats and once he'd changed, Gibbs tucked him into his own bed.

More or less they'd stayed on their own sides of it, but there was still something weird and unsaid left between them.

"Ah fuck!"  Tony gasped as his thoughts distracted him and he dragged his hand against the rough wood, a long splinter imbedding itself a good half inch into his middle finger.

"What happened?" Gibbs asked, tossing the drill on the workbench.

Tony shook his hand, but the damn thing was lodged in tight.  "Splinter," he grumbled as he made his way to the shelf over the workbench and pulled down the small first aid kit.

As he was digging for the tweezers, Gibbs took the box from him.  "I got it," Gibbs told him as he pulled out the tweezers, some antiseptic lotion and a band-aid.  Gibbs took Tony's hand, tilting it to see better in the low light. "That's a pretty nasty one," he commented as he noticed the blood welling up.

"I do not understand why you think this is such a fabulous hobby," Tony mumbled through gritted teeth.  "Why don't you do something less dangerous like, I don't know, naked spear-fishing for piranhas or something?"

Gibbs chuckled at the odd suggestion.  "Okay, I've got it," Gibbs warned, but kept talking.  "I have this rule about hobbies:  Never do anything that you wouldn't want to have to explain to the paramedics."   Before Tony could brace himself, Gibbs yanked, pulling out the splinter.

"Oh, hell!  Ow!" Tony yelped, trying to yank his arm back. 

Gibbs had a tight hold on his wrist, but he wasn't using even a fraction of the grip Tony knew he could have applied if he really tried.  As much as it actually did hurt to have the splinter pulled out, he was strangely okay with Gibbs holding his hand.  He sighed.  This 'thing' needed to come to a head before they both went nuts.

Gibbs didn't let go as he dug through the little white box until he came up with a sterile packet of gauze.  He still held on, choosing to use his teeth to rip the paper packet open and then carefully fishing out the gauze with his free hand. 

Tony watched him curiously.  He'd seen Gibbs be gentle with little kids and animals, but like this - with him - was new.

Gibbs used one edge of the gauze square to dab up the few drops of blood and put pressure on the hole for a second. When he was satisfied it wasn't bleeding any more, he put a dab of ointment on the other end of the gauze and wiped it over Tony' finger and then wrapped the band-aid around it.

"Better?" Gibbs asked quietly.

Tony couldn't look away from his bandaged finger and the fact that Gibbs was still holding his hand cradled in his own.

"Um… I guess?"

"Don't know what else you want me to do, DiNozzo," Gibbs said sounding a little more like his old self. "Kiss it better?"

Deciding to push this thing to one kind of conclusion or another, Tony took half a step forward, putting him decidedly in Gibbs' personal space. "You want to?" he asked with more bravado than he felt.

Gibbs looked up from their still-joined hands and their eyes locked. "I kiss you, Tony, and it won't be on a finger full of Neosporin."

Tony smiled. "Really? Where would it be?"

As Gibbs leaned in, Tony's eyes drifted shut.

The kiss was everything Tony would have wanted, but would never have had the balls to ask for. When it was over all he could think was that it was about damn time the tension broke. They could sort out the rest as they went.


End file.
